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L  I  E,  R.APLY 
OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY 
Of    ILLINOIS 


mm  HISTORICAL  SURVSf 


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1 


No.  971 


Joseph  Smith,  Jr., 
As  A  Translator 


Reprint  of 
An  Inquiry  Conducted 

BY 

Rt.  Rev.  F.  S.  Spalding,  D.  D., 

Late  Bishop  of  Utah 
With  the  kind  assistance  of  capable  scholars 


THE     NATIONAL    COUNCIL 
Protestant  Episcopal  Church 

Church  Missions  House 
281  4th  Ave.,  New  York,  N.  Y. 


^CJ 


,■/  Jr-^r 


To  my  many  Mormon  friends — 
who  arc  as  honest  searchers  after 
the  truth  as  he  hopes  he  is  himself 
— this  book,  is  dedicated  by 

THE  AUTHOR. 


Salt  Lake  City,  Utah, 

November  1,  1912. 


CHAPTER  I. 

If  the  Book  of  Mormon  is  true,  it  is,  next  to  the  Bible, 
the  most  important  book  in  the  world.  This  fact  has  been 
appreciated  by  the  members  of  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of 
Latter-day  Saints  and  by  them  alone.  Their  leaders  and 
teachers  have  defended  the  authenticity  of  the  book  with 
great  earnestness  and  power.  No  fair-minded  man  can  read 
the  works  of  Orson  Pratt  (perhaps  the  ablest  of  all  the  Mor- 
mon advocates),  and  of  Brigham  H.  Roberts,  who,  in  his  "New 
Witnesses  for  God,"  has  replied  to  more  recent  criticism,  with- 
out being  impressed  with  their  conviction  of  the  truth  and 
value  of  the  Book  of  Mormon,  and  their  deep  sense  of  duty 
to  persuade  others  to  accept  their  conclusions.  If  this 
book  is  what  it  claims  to  be  it  throws  light  upon  matters  of 
the  first  importance. 

At  the  present  time,  when  New  Testament  scholars,  with 
better  linguistic  and  historic  equipment  than  ever  before,  are 
studying  the  life  and  teachings  of  Jesus,  the  record  of  His  ap- 
pearance to  the  Nephites  and  the  version  of  His  teachings  pre- 
served by  the  Nephite  scribes  would  be  of  great  value. 

A  flood  of  light  would  be  thrown  upon  the  whole  question 
of  Church  origins  if  the  account  of  the  organization  of  the 
Church  in  the  new  world,  described  in  the  Book  of  Mormon, 
were  similar  to  that  in  the  old. 

The  value  of  the  Book  of  Mormon  to  the  archaeologist 
would  be  equally  great.  If  this  Nephite  record  be  true,  we 
have  an  account  of  the  civilization  in  the  North  and  Central 
and  South  Americas  from  "The  earliest  ages  after  the  Flood 
to  the  beginning  of  the  Fifth  Century  of  the  Christian  Era."* 

The  Book  of  Mormon,  were  it  shown  to  be  true,  would 
give  important  information  to  Scientists,  The  account  of  the 
convulsions  of  nature,  which  occurred  in  America  at  the  time 
of  Christ's  coming,  would  compel  the  geologist  to  re-examine 
his    theories   as   to   the    formation    of    land    and    sea,   and    the 


O.   Pratt's  "Remarkable  Visions." 

[3] 


astronomer  to  adjust  his  laws  of  the  heavens  to  the  wonderful 
three  days*  darkness.  The  botanist  and  zoologist  would  have 
to  rewrite  the  account  of  the  flora  and  fauna  of  America.  It 
is  not  to  be  wondered,  therefore,  that  those  who  believe  in  the 
truth  of  this  book  have  been  faithful  in  urging  its  claim  to 
serious  attention. 

On  the  other  hand  it  is  inexcusable  that  the  book  has  never 
had  the  serious  examination  which  its  importance  demands.  Pro- 
fessor Orson  Pratt  was  not  far  from  correct  when  he  wrote: 

"The  great  majority  of  the  v/orld,  however,  reject  the 
Book  of  Mormon  without  the  least  examination  as  to  its 
claims.  They  have  heard  that  there  was  such  a  book,  but  they 
know  nothing  of  its  contents,  only  that  it  claims  to  be  a  divine 
revelation.     They  at  once  reject  it  as  an  imposture."* 

He  says,  moreover : 

"This  book  must  be  either  true  or  false.  If  true,  it  is 
one  of  the  most  important  messages  ever  sent  from  God  to 
man,  affecting  both  the  temporal  and  eternal  interests  of  every 
people  under  heaven  to  the  same  extent  and  in  the  same  degree 
that  the  message  of  Noah  affected  the  inhabitants  of  the  old 
world.  If  false,  it  is  one  of  the  most  cunning,  wicked,  bold,  deep- 
laid  impositions  ever  palmed  upon  the  world,  calculated  to  deceive 
and  ruin  millions  who  would  sincerely  receive  it  as  the  word  of 
God."* 

The  dilemma  accepted  for  the  book  is  also  accepted  for  its 
author.  If  Joseph  Smith  is  not  a  true  prophet  of  God  he  must 
be  an  impostor — was  a  position  frankly  accepted  by  this  and 
other  writers.  As  a  result  it  was  inevitable  that  the  whole  dis- 
cussion should  descend  to  personalities.  Those  who  attacked 
the  Mormons  felt  moved  to  publish  everything  they  could  dis- 
cover or  invent  to  the  discredit  of  "Joe  Smith"  and  his  parents, 
while  those  who  believed  in  him  replied  with  a  partisan  record 
of  virtues  of  life,  and  miracles  of  power. 

A  rather  careful  reading  of  the  controversy  leads  this 
writer   to    the    conclusion    that    the    Latter-day    Saints    set    an 


•  "The    Divine   Authenticity   of   the   Book   of    Mormon,"    Page   2,   Liverpool,   1850; 
also  page  1. 

L4J 


example  of  dignity  and  courtesy  which  their  opponents  rarely 
followed.  And  yet,  in  the  adoption  of  this  unfair  method, 
critics  of  Mormonism  were  but  following  the  example  of  other 
defenders  of  their  faith  against  novelty  in  religion. 


CHAPTER  II. 

It  is  not  the  purpose  of  this  book  to  enter  into  the 
discussion  as  to  the  truthfulness  of  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.'s  de- 
scription of  the  finding  of  the  Golden  Plates  in  a  hill  of  consid- 
erable size,  "convenient  to  the  village  of  Manchester,  Ontario 
County,  New  York,"  nor  of  his  at  last  obtaining  possession  of 
them,  together  with  the  Urim  and  Thummim  and  the  breast- 
plate, on  September  22,  1827. 

It  is  proposed,  for  the  sake  of  argument,  that  we  admit 
the  truth  of  the  account  of  the  finding  of  the  plates  and 
other  contents  of  the  stone  box — as  printed  in  the  "Extracts 
from  the  History  of  Joseph  Smith"  in  the  "Pearl  of  Great 
Price,"  and  as  described  more  minutely  by  Prof.  Orson  Pratt. 
No  doubt,  Mr.  Pratt  obtained  his  account  from  Joseph  Smith 
himself,  and  his  statement  is  as  follows: 

"These  records  were  engraved  on  plates,  which  had  the 
appearance  of  gold.  Each  plate  was  not  far  from  seven  by 
eight  inches  in  width  and  length,  being  not  quite  as  thick 
as  common  tin.  They  were  filled  on  both  sides  with  en- 
gravings in  Egyptian  characters  and  bound  together  in  a 
volume  as  the  leaves  of  a  book,  and  fastened  at  one  edge 
with  three  rings  running  through  the  whole.  The  volume 
was  something  near  six  inches  in  thickness,  a  part  of  which 
was  sealed.  The  characters  or  letters  upon  the  unsealed  part 
were  small  and  beautifully  engraved.  The  whole  book  ex- 
hibited many  marks  of  antiquity  in  its  construction,  as  well  as 
much  skill  in  the  art  of  engraving.  With  the  records  was 
found  a  curious  instrument,  called  by  the  ancients  the  Urim 
and  Thummim,  which  consisted  of  two  transparent  stones,  clear 
as  crystal,  set  in  the  two  rims  of  a  bow.  This  was  in  use  in 
ancient  times  by  persons  called  'seers.'  It  was  an  instrument, 
by  the  use  of  which  they  received  revelations  of  things  distant  or 
of  things  past  and  future."* 


'Remarkable   Visions,"   page   6.   Liverpool.   December    14,    1848. 

[S] 


We  have  quite  another  question  to  ask,  and  it  is  one 
which  was  asked  earnestly  by  those  who  were  favorably  im- 
pressed with  Joseph  Smith's  statements  about  his  wonderful 
discovery.  The  question  is  this :  "Did  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  translate 
the  plates  correctly?  This  question  was  asked  by  Martin  Harris, 
who  not  only  gave  the  Prophet  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  and  his  wife  fifty 
dollars  to  enable  them  to  escape  from  the  persecution  in  Man- 
chester, New  York,  but  who  also  furnished  the  money  to  print 
the  first  edition  of  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.'s  translation.  To  satisfy 
Mr.  Harris'  curiosity,  the  Prophet  "drew  off  from  the  plates" 
certain  characters  and  gave  Mr.  Harris  permission  to  submit 
them  to  expert  examination.  The  expert  whom  Mr.  Harris 
selected,  by  the  advice  of  Dr.  Mitchell,  was  Prof.  Chas.  Anthon, 
of  New  York. 

We  have  two  accounts  of  Prof.  Anthon's  opinion.  Joseph 
Smith's  own  statement,  which  he  says  he  received  from  Mr. 
Harris,  printed  in  "The  Pearl  of  Great  Price,"  is  as  follows: 


"I  went  to  the  City  of  New  York,  and  presented  the 
characters  which  had  been  translated,  with  the  translation 
thereof,  to  Prof.  Charles  Anthon,  a  gentleman  celebrated  for  his 
literary  attainments.  Professor  Anthon  stated  that  the  trans- 
lation was  correct,  more  so  than  any  he  had  before  seen  trans- 
lated from  the  Eg>'ptian.  I  then  showed  him  those  which  were 
not  yet  translated,  and  he  said  they  were  Chaldaic,  Assyriac, 
and  Arabic,  and  he  said  they  were  true  characters.  He  gave 
me  a  certificate  certifying  to  the  people  of  Palmyra,  New 
York,  that  they  were  true  characters,  and  that  the  transla- 
tion of  such  of  them  as  had  been  transcribed  were  also  correct. 
I  took  the  certificate  and  put  it  into  my  pocket  and  was  just 
leaving  the  house,  when  Mr.  Anthon  called  me  back  and  asked 
me  how  the  young  man  (Joseph  Smith)  found  out  that  there 
were  gold  plates  in  the  place  where  he  found  them.  I  answered 
that  an  angel  of  God  had  revealed  it  unto  him.  He  then  said 
to  me,  'Let  me  see  that  certificate.'  I  accordingly  took  it  out 
of  my  pocket  and  gave  it  to  him,  when  he  took  it  and  tore  it 
to  pieces,  saying  there  was  no  such  thing  as  ministering  angels, 
and  that  if  I  would  bring  the  plates  to  him  he  would  translate 
them.  I  informed  him  that  part  of  the  plates  were  sealed,  and 
that  I  was  forbidden  to  bring  them.  He  replied,  'I  cannot  read 
a  sealed  book.' " 

[6] 


Professor  Orson  Pratt,  in  his  essay  on  "Prophetic  Evidence 
in  favor  of  the  Book  of  Mormon,"  Liverpool,  January  15,  1851, 
reprints  from  a  periodical  entitled  "The  Church  Record,"  the 
other  account  of  Prof  Anthon's  opinion  as  to  the  characters 
copied  by  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  from  the  plates. 

"Many  years  ago,  the  precise  date  I  do  not  now  recollect, 
a  plain  looking  countryman  (Martin  Harris)  called  upon  me 
with  a  letter  from  Dr.  Samuel  S.  Mitchell,  requesting  me  to 
examine  and  give  my  opinion  upon  a  certain  paper,  marked 
with  various  characters,  which  the  Doctor  confessed  he  could 
not  decipher,  and  which  the  bearer  of  the  note  was  very  anxious 
to  have  explained.  A  very  brief  examination  convinced  me 
that  it  was  a  mere  hoax  and  a  very  clumsy  one,  too.  The 
characters  were  arranged  in  columns,  like  the  Chinese  mode  of 
writing  and  presented  the  most  singular  medley  that  I  ever  be- 
held. Greek,  Hebrew  and  all  sorts  of  letters,  more  or  less 
distorted,  either  through  unskilfulness  or  from  actual  design,  were 
intermingled  with  sundry  delineations  of  half  moons,  stars  and 
other  natural  objects,  and  the  whole  ended  in  a  rude  representa- 
tion of  the  Mexican  Zodiac." 

The  question  we  now  ask  is  "Was  the  translation  of  the 
Book  of  Mormon  correct?"  As  far  as  we  can  discover,  no 
further  attempt  was  made  to  give  an  answer  to  this  question 
from  competent  linguists.  The  emphasis  was  rather  placed 
upon  the  actual  objectivity  of  the  plates  themselves,  and  that 
end  was  secured  by  the  exhibition  of  the  plates,  first  to  three 
and  later  to  eight  witnesses,*  and  the  publication  of  their  testi- 
mony. This  was  the  logical  method  of  procedure,  because 
there  was  no  scholar  living  whose  opinion  would  have  been  of 
real  value,  even  had  all  the  plates  been  submitted  for  his 
inspection. 


•  And  also  the  testimony  of  eight  witnesses:  "Be  it  known  until  all  nations, 
kindreds,  tongues  and  peoples,  unto  whom  this  work  shall  come,  that  Joseph  Smith, 
Jr.,  the  Author  and  Proprietor  of  this  work,  has  shown  unto  us  the  plates  of  which 
hath  been  spoken,  which  have  the  appearance  of  gold;  and  as  many  of  the  leaves  as 
the  said  Smith  has  translated,  we  did  handle  with  our  hands;  and  we  also  saw  the 
engravings  thereon,  all  of  which  has  the  appearance  of  ancient  work,  and  of  curious 
workmanship.  And  this  we  bear  record,  with  words  of  soberness,  that  the  said 
Smith  has  shown  unto  us,  for  we  have  seen  and  hefted,  and  know  of  a  surety  that  the 
said  Smith  has  got  the  plates  of  which  we  have  spoken.  And  we  give  our  names 
unto  the  world,  to  witness  unto  the  world  that  which  we  have  seen:  and  we  lie  not, 
God  bearing  witness  of  it." 

Christian    Whitmer, 
Jacob  Whitmer, 
Peter  Whitmer,  Jr., 
John    Whitmer, 
Hiram   Pace 
Joseph    Smith,   Sr., 
Hyrum  Smith 
Samuel  H.   Smith. 

[7] 


Champollion  published  the  first  successful  steps  in  the 
decipherment  of  Egyptian  hieroglyphics  in  1822,  and  little 
of  the  language  was  understood  when  he  died  in  1832.  The 
grammar  which  he  began  was  not  completed  and  published 
until  1841.  The  Latter-day  Saints,  are,  therefore,  not  to  be 
criticised  for  not  giving  the  world  the  opinion  of  scholars 
upon  the  translation.  Such  evidence  of  the  authenticity  of  their 
sacred  book  was  impossible.  They  did  the  best  thing  that  they 
could  do;  they  circulated  with  each  copy  of  the  Book  of  Mor- 
mon the  testimony  of  the  three  and  of  the  eight  witnesses.* 
Though  the  eight  withnesses  testify  only  to  having  handled  the 
plates  and  inspected  the  engravings  thereon,  "all  of  which  had 
the  appearance  of  ancient  work  of  curious  workmanship,"  the 
three  witnesses  further  testify  that  they  "also  know  that  they 
(the  plates)  have  been  translated  by  the  gift  and  power  of  God, 
for  his  voice  hath  declared  it  unto  us,  wherefore  we  know  of 
a  surety  that  the  work  is  true." 


Failing  to  obtain  the  opinion  of  scholars  to  the  correct- 
ness of  the  translation,  the  Latter-day  Saints  felt  that  they  had 
something  more  impressive,  the  testimony  of  divinely  inspired 
witnesses. 


•  The  Book  of  Mormon,  First  Edition,  facing  page  588:  "Be  it  known  unto 
all  nations,  kindreds,  tongues  and  people,  unto  whom  this  work  shall  come,  that  we, 
through  the  grace  of  God  the  Father,  and  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  have  seen  the  plates 
which  contain  this  record,  which  is  a  record  of  the  people  of  Nephi,  and  also  of  the 
Lamanites,  his  brethren,  and  also  of  the  people  of  Jared,  which  came  from  the  tower 
of  which  hath  been  spoken;  and  we  also  know  that  they  have  been  translated  by 
the  gift  and  power  of  God,  for  his  voice  hath  declared  it  unto  us;  wherefore  we  know 
of  a  surety,  that  the  work  is  true.  And  we  also  testify  that  we  have  seen  the 
engravings  which  are  upon  the  plates,  and  they  have  been  shown  unto  us  by  the 
power  of  God  and  not  of  man.  And  we  declare  with  words  of  soberness,  that  an  Angel 
of  God  came  from  heaven,  and  he  brought  and  laid  before  our  eyes,  that  we  beheld 
and  saw  the  plates,  and  the  engravings  thereon;  and  we  know  that  it  is  by  the  grace 
of  God  the  Father,  and  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  that  we  beheld  and  bear  record  that 
these  things  are  true;  and  it  is  marvellous  in  our  eyes:  Nevertheless,  the  voice  of 
the  Lord  commanded  us  that  we  should  bear  record  of  it;  wherefore,  to  be  obedient 
unto  the  commandments  of  God,  we  bear  testimony  of  these  things.  And  we  know 
that  if  we  are  faithful  in  Christ,  we  shall  rid  our  garn^ents  of  the  blood  of  ^11  men, 
and  be  found  spotless  before  the  judgment  seat  of  Christ,  and  shall  dwell  with  him 
eternally  in  the  heavens.  And  the  honor  be  to  the  Father,  and  to  the  Son,  and  to 
the  Holy  Ghost,  which  i«  one  God.     Amen." 

Oliver  Cowdery 
David  Whituer 
Martin   Harris 


[8] 


CHAPTER  III. 

The  eighth  article  of  faith  of  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ 
of  Latter-day  Saints  distinguishes  between  the  correctness  of 
the  translation  of  the  Bible  and  of  the  Book  of  Mormon.  While 
the  Bible  is  accepted  as  the  Word  of  God,  "so  far  as  it  is  cor- 
rectly translated,"  there  is  no  such  caution  with  reference  to 
the  Book  of  Mormon,  but  the  statement,  "We  also  believe  the 
Book  of  Mormon  to  be  the  Word  of  God,"  is  without  qualifi- 
cation. 

In  thus  placing  the  inspiration  of  the  Book  of  Mormon 
upon  a  higher  plane  than  that  of  the  Bible,  the  Latter-day  Saints 
are  logical.  The  Book  of  Mormon  was  translated  by  one  man, 
and  he  was  accepted  by  them  as  an  inspired  prophet  of  God — 
using  the  Urim  and  Thummim. 

Of  this  "sacred  instrument,"  Professor  Pratt  asks : 

"Did  ever  any  inspired  man  anciently  receive  a  revelation 
through  the  sacred  instrument  which  was  not  given  by  a  power 
from  on  high?"* 

If  it  be  objected  that  there  is  no  record  of  the  Urim  and 
Thummim  being  used  to  produce  accurate  translations,  the  Mor- 
mon's reply  is  that  God's  own  voice  assured  Oliver  Cowdery, 
David  Whitmer  and  Martin  Harris  that  the  translation  was  by 
"the  gift  and  power  of  God,"  and  that,  therefore,  the  "work  is 
true."  So  strong  was  their  conviction  of  the  superiority  of  the 
Book  of  Mormon,  both  in  the  original  and  in  its  translation,  to 
the  King  James  Bible,  that  Prof.  Orson  Pratt  felt  justified  in 
writing  as  follows : 

"How  are  the  Protestants  then  to  know  without  new 
revelation,  that  any  one  book  of  the  Bible  was  divinely  inspired? 
How  do  they  know  but  that  it  was  merely  written  according  to 
the  best  judgment  of  the  author?  The  Bible  cannot  inform 
them  until  the  inspiration  of  the  Bible  be  established.  If  it  be 
admitted  that  the  apostles  and  evangelists  did  write  the  books  of 
the  New  Testament,  that  does  not  prove  of  itself  that  they  were 


•  Reply   to  a  pamphlet  printed   in   Glasgow   with   the   "approbation"   of  clergymen 
of  difiFerent   denominations,   entitled   "Remarks   on   Mormonism,"   Liverpool,    1849. 

[9] 


divinely  inspired  at  the  time  they  wrote.  They  were  men  sub- 
ject to  like  passions  with  other  men  and  liable  to  err  (except?) 
when  under  the  direct  inspiration  of  the  Spirit.  How  can  it 
be  known  without  new  revelation,  that  these  writers  did  not 
sometimes  write  their  own  words  and  opinions  instead  of  the 
word  of  the  Lord  as  given  by  the  Holy  Ghost?"* 

And  again: 

"From  the  heterogeneous  mass  of  contradictory  manu- 
scripts they  give  an  English  translation  and  call  it  the  Bible; 
thus  leaving  millions  to  guess  out  the  true  meaning,  and  quarrel 
and  contend  with  each  other  because  they  do  not  guess  alike."* 

And  again: 

"Satan  has  taken  the  advantage  of  their  dark  and  benighted 
condition  and  robbed  the  world  of  a  great  number  of  sacr^ 
books,  corrupting  those  few  that  remained  to  such  a  degree 
that  he  has  the  whole  of  Christendom  quarreling  about  their 
true  meaning."* 

The  Mormon  writers  have  never  been  quite  consistent  in 
this  position,  because  even  Prof.  Orson  Pratt  spends  far  more 
time  and  effort  proving  the  truth  of  the  Book  of  Mormon  from 
the  Bible  (faulty  and  uncertain  as  it  may  be  as  to  its  original 
manuscripts  and  their  translation)  than  in  establishing  the  truth 
of  the  Bible  from  the  Book  of  Mormon.  However,  since  he 
was  endeavoring  to  convince  those  who  had  implicit  confidence 
in  the  Bible,  such  a  method  appeared  to  him  to  be  the  most 
advisable. 


•  Essay    No.    3    on    Divine    Authenticity    of    the    Book    of    Mormon,    Liverpool, 
December   1,   18S0. 


[10] 


CHAPTER  IV. 

It  is  surely  clear  to  the  reader  that  the  correctness  of  the 
translation  of  the  Book  of  Mormon  is  a  most  important  question. 
It  was  the  conviction  that  he  had  been  selected  by  the  Almighty 
to  give  to  mankind  this  Book  which  won  for  Joseph  Smith,  Jr., 
the  attention  of  earnest  men  and  gave  him  leadership  over  them. 
If  the  translation  of  the  plates  is  inaccurate  he  did  not  deserve 
that  leadership.  However  sincere  he  may  have  been  in  believ- 
ing in  his  mission,  if  the  translation  he  gave  to  mankind  is  false, 
he  is  shown  to  have  been  self-deceived.  More  than  this :  The 
reliance  placed  upon  the  witnesses  who  testified  that  God's  voice 
assured  them  that  the  translation  was  "by  the  gift  and  power  of 
God"  is  broken  down.  They,  too,  were  self -deceived.  They  did 
not  hear  God's  voice;  because  God's  voice  could  not  have  as- 
sured them  that  an  incorrect  thing  was  true. 

If  the  Book  of  Mormon  was  not  a  correct  translation,  and 
yet  Joseph  Smith  thought  that  it  came  to  him  by  inspiration  and 
revelation  from  God,  thoughtful  men  cannot  be  asked  to  accept 
other  revelations  which  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  asserted  were  also 
given  to  him  by  the  Deity.  If  he  was  self-deceived  in  regard 
to  his  first  and  most  extensive  work,  how  can  we  be  sure  he 
was  not  also  self -deceived  in  regard  to  later  supposed  communi- 
cations from  the  Almighty?  These  questions  are  most  critical, 
and  yet,  if  the  thoughtful  Latter-day  Saints  of  today  are  like 
those  of  the  past,  they  will  welcome  them,  because  they  have  al- 
ways invited  investigation. 

In  a  discourse  delivered  in  the  Tabernacle  at  Logan,  Utah, 
Sunday  evening,  April  2,  1911,  reported  by  Mr.  F.  E.  Barker  for 
the  June,  1911,  number  of  "The  Improvement  Era,"  Elder  Brig- 
ham  Roberts,  perhaps  the  most  candid  and  able  of  the  living 
defenders  of  Mormonism,  made  this  matter  clear.  After  quoting 
from  a  pamphlet  entitled  "The  Bible  and  the  Book  of  Mormon" 
by  Rev.  Paul  Jones,  of  St,  John's  Church,  Logan,  Utah,  a  state- 
ment of  his  own,  that  the  Book  of  Mormon  of  necessity  must 
submit  to  every  test,  to  literary  criticism  as  well  as  to  every  other 
kind  of  criticism,  Mr.  Roberts  said : 

[11] 
J.  C.    ILL  LiB. 


"I  am  willing  to  repeat  my  statement  that  the  Book  of  Mor- 
mon must  submit  to  every  test — literary  criticism  with  the  rest. 
Indeed,  it  must  submit  to  every  analysis  and  examination.  It 
must  submit  to  historical  tests,  to  the  tests  of  archaeological  re- 
search, and  also  to  the  higher  criticism.  And,  what  is  more,  in 
the  midst  of  it  all,  its  advocates  must  carry  themselves  in  a  spirit 
of  patience  and  of  courage ;  and  that  they  will  do  just  as  long, 
of  course,  as  their  faith  remains  true  to  the  book.  For  many 
years,  after  a  rather  rigid  analysis,  as  I  think,  of  the  evidence 
bearing  upon  the  truth  of  the  Book  of  Mormon,  I  have  reached 
through  some  stress  and  struggle,  too,  an  absolute  conviction  of 
its  truth.  The  Book  is  flung  down  into  the  world's  mass  of 
literature,  and  here  it  is ;  we  proclaim  it  true,  and  the  world  has 
the  right  to  test  it  to  the  uttermost  in  every  possible  way." 


CHAPTER  V. 


We  have  seen  how  much  depends  upon  the  answer  to  our 
question,  "Was  the  Book  of  Mormon  translated  correctly?"  We 
have  also  seen  that  those  who  think  it  was  correctly  translated, 
invite  and  welcome  such  a  question.  We  accept  the  invitation 
in  the  spirit  it  is  given,  and  again  ask  our  question,  "Is  the  trans- 
lation of  the  Book  of  Mormon  correct?" 

In  his  essay  on  "Divine  Authority,"  on  the  question  "Was 
Joseph  Smith  sent  of  God?"  Apostle  Orson  Pratt  gives  as  the 
eleventh  reason  for  answering  the  question  in  the  affirmative: 


"The  miracles  wrought  by  Joseph  Smith  are  evidence  of 
no  small  moment  to  establish  his  divine  authority.  In  the  name 
of  the  Lord  he  cast  out  devils,  healed  the  sick,  spoke  with  new 
tongues,  interpreted  ancient  languages  and  predicted  future 
events." 


What  were  the  "ancient  languages"  the  Prophet  translated? 
Quite  clearly  other  translations  than  the  Book  of  Mormon  are 
referred  to ;  because  Apostle  Pratt  was  too  good  a  logician  to 
think  of  proving  the  Book  of  Mormon  by  the  Book  of  Mormon 
itself,  especially  when  he  had — as  we  have  just  seen — charged 
Protestant  Christians  with  such  reasoning  in  a  circle  about  the 

[12] 


inspiration  of  the  Hebrew  Scriptures.  "The  interpretation  of 
ancient  languages"  referred  to  is  considered  of  a  character  with 
casting  out  devils,  healing  the  sick  and  speaking  with  new 
tongues,  and  if  true,  is  supernormal  evidence  of  Divine  power. 
Indeed,  the  "interpretation  of  ancient  languages"  is  referred  to 
as  one  of  "the  miracles  wrought  by  Joseph  Smith."  To  those 
other  translations  we  therefore  turn  because  they  may  enable 
us  to  answer  our  question. 

Joseph  Smith's  competency  as  a  translator  of  ancient 
languages  can  be  ascertained  in  but  one  way.  The  original 
texts,  together  with  his  interpretations,  must  be  submitted  to 
competent  scholars,  and  if  they  declare  his  translation  to  be  cor- 
rect, then  it  must  be  accepted  as  true.  We  have  seen  that  an 
effort  was  made  by  Martin  Harris — with  the  approval  of  Joseph 
Smith,  Jr. — to  do  this,  but  at  a  time  when  such  a  test  was  quite 
impossible.  Such  a  test  of  the  Book  of  Mormon  could  be  made 
today ;  because  the  Egyptian  language  is  readily  translated  by 
many  scholars,  but  the  plates  are  not  available.  They  are  kept 
by  "the  heavenly  messenger"  who  delivered  them  to  the  Prophet, 
and  to  whom  they  were  again  delivered  up,  "and  he  has  them  in 
his  charge  unto  this  day."  Our  purpose  will  be  served  equally 
well  if  the  other  translations  of  the  prophet  referred  to  can  be 
examined,  and  fortunately  one  of  these  translations,  together 
with  the  original  text,  is  available.  We  refer  to  "The  Book  of 
Abraham,"  translated  from  the  Papyrus  by  Joseph  Smith.  "A 
translation  of  some  ancient  records,  that  have  fallen  into  our 
hands,  from  the  catacombs  of  Egypt;  the  writings  of  Abraham 
while  he  was  in  Egypt,  called  the  Book  of  Abraham,  written  by 
his  own  hand,  upon  papyrus." 

The  Book  of  Abraham,  with  three  fac-similes  of  the  original 
Egyptian  text  of  Abraham  "written  by  his  own  hand,  upon 
papyrus,"  together  with  the  Prophet's  explanation  and  the 
translation,  is  a  part  of  the  "Pearl  of  Great  Price,"  one  of  the 
Sacred  Books  of  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-day 
Saints.  The  history  of  this  book  may  also  be  readily  learned, 
because  Mr.  Brigham  H.  Roberts,  with  scrupulous  accuracy,  has 
reprinted,  in  the  second  volume  of  his  "History  of  the  Church," 
the  Prophet  Joseph  Smith's  own  account  of  the  discovery  of  the 
book  and  its  translation,  as  first  published  by  him  in  "Times  and 

[13] 


Seasons."     For  the  convenience  of  the  reader,  this  account  is 
reprinted : 

"On  the  third  of  July,  Michael  H.  Chandler  came  to  Kirt- 
land  to  exhibit  some  Egyptian  Mummies.  There  were  four 
human  figures  together  with  some  two  or  three  rolls  of  papyrus 
covered  with  hieroglyphic  figures  and  devices.  As  Mr.  Chandler 
had  been  told  I  could  translate  them,  he  brought  me  some  of 
the  characters  and  I  gave  him  the  interpretation,  and  like  a 
gentleman,  he  gave  me  the  following  certificate : 

Kirtland,   July   6,    1835. 

"This  is  to  make  known  to  all  who  may  be  desirous,  con- 
cerning the  knowledge  of  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  Jun.,  in  deciphering 
the  ancient  Egyptian  hieroglyphic  characters  in  my  possession, 
which  I  have  in  many  eminent  cities  showed  to  the  most  learned ; 
and,  from  the  information  that  I  could  ever  learn,  or  meet  with, 
I  find  that  of  Mr.  Joseph  Smith,  Jun.,  to  correspond  in  the  most 
minute  matters. 

MICHAEL  H.   CHANDLER, 
Travelling  With  and  Proprietor  of  Egyptian  Mummies."* 

"Soon  after  this,  some  of  the  saints  of  Kirtland  purchased 
the  mummies  and  papyrus,  a  description  of  which  will  appear 
hereafter,  and  with  W.  W.  Phelps  and  Oliver  Cowdery  as  scribes, 
I  commenced  the  translation  of  some  of  the  characters  of  hiero- 
glyphics, and  much  to  our  joy,  found  that  one  of  the  rolls  con- 
tained the  writing  of  Abraham,  another  the  writing  of  Joseph 
of  Egypt,  etc.  ...  a  more  full  account  of  which  will  ap- 
pear in  its  place,  as  I  proceed  to  examine  or  unfold  them. 
Truly  we  can  say  the  Lord  is  beginning  to  reveal  the  abundance 
of  peace  and  truth."** 

"The  remainder  of  the  month,  I  was  continually  engaged  in 
translating  an  alphabet  to  the  Book  of  Abraham  and  arranging 
a  grammar  of  the  Egyptian  Language  as  practiced  by  the 
ancients."t 

"Oct.  1,  1835 — This  afternoon  I  labored  on  the  Egyptian 
Alphabet,  in  company  with  Brothers  Oliver  Cowdery  and  W.  W. 

•  History  of  The  Church,  Vol.  2,  page  235 

••  History  of  The  Church,  Vol.  2,  page  236. 

t  History  of  The  Church,  Vol.  2,  page  238. 

[14] 


Phelps,  and  during  the  research,  the  principles  of  astronomy  as 
understood  by  Father  Abraham  and  the  ancients  unfolded  to 
our  understanding,  the  particulars  of  which  will  appear  here- 
after."* 

"Saturday,  Oct,  24 — Mr.  Goodrich  and  wife  called  to  see 
the  ancient  Egyptian  records,  and  also  Dr.  Frederick  G.  Wil- 
liams to  see  the  mummies."** 

"Thursday,  29— While  at  the  Doctor's,  Bishop  Edward 
Partridge  came  in,  in  company  with  President  Phelps.  I  was 
much  rejoiced  to  see  him.  We  examined  the  mummies,  returned 
home  and  my  scribe  commenced  writing  in  my  journal  a  history 
of  my  life."t 

The  complete  translation  of  the  Book  of  Abraham,  together 
with  the  fac-similes,  was  published  in  "Times  and  Seasons"  for 
March  1,  1842,  March  15,  1842,  and  May  16,  1842.  It  was  con- 
sidered from  the  first — and  it  is  accepted  today — as  a  revelation 
from  God.  "Truly  we  can  say,"  wrote  the  Prophet,  "The  Lord 
is  beginning  to  reveal  the  abundance  of  peace  and  truth." 

In  the  preface  to  the  English  edition  of  the  "Pearl  of 
Great  Price,"  published  in  Liverpool,  July  11,  1851,  Mr.  Frank- 
lin D.  Richards  describes  the  book,  of  which  "The  Book  of 
Abraham"  was  a  part,  as  "a  little  collection  of  precious  truths — 
that  will  increase  their  ability  to  maintain  and  to  defend  the 
holy  faith."    His  preface  concludes  with  the  following  testimony : 

"Nor  do  we  conceive  it  possible  for  any  unprejudiced  person 
to  arise  from  a  careful  perusal  of  this  work,  without  being  deep- 
ly impressed  with  a  sense  of  the  Divine  calling  and  holy  ordina- 
tion of  the  man  by  whom  these  revelations,  translations  and  nar- 
rations have  been  communicated  to  us.  As  impervious  as  the 
minds  of  men  may  be  at  present  to  convictions,  the  day  is  not 
far  distant  when  sinners,  as  well  as  Saints,  will  know  that 
Joseph  Smith  was  one  of  the  greatest  men  that  ever  lived  upon 
the  earth,  and  that  under  God  he  was  the  Prophet  and  founder 
of  the  dispensation  of  the  fullness  of  times,  in  which  will  be 
gathered  into  one  all  things  which  are  in  Christ,  both  which  are 
in  heaven  and  which  are  on  earth." 


•  History  of  The  Church,  Vol.  2,  page  286. 

»•  History  of  The  Church,  Vol.  2,  page  291. 

t  History  of  The  Church,  Vol.  2,  page  316. 


[IS] 


Apostle  George  Q.  Cannon  published,  in  1888,  "The  Life 
of  Joseph  Smith  the  Phophet,"  and  his  account  of  the  Book 
of  Abraham  gives  further  evidence — most  valuable  as  coming 
from  one  who  was  intimately  acqainted  with  the  feelings  of  his 
fellow  churchmen — that  the  translation  we  are  considering  was 
believed  by  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  and  his  contemporaries  to  have 
been  given  him  by  revelation  and  inspiration: 

"While  Joseph  Smith  had  been  laboring  in  Kirtland, 
journeying  to  and  from  Missouri,  teaching  his  brethren  and 
being  taught  of  God,  there  were  coming  to  him,  from  one  of 
the  catacombs  of  Egypt,  the  writings  of  Father  Abraham  and 
of  Joseph,  the  governor  of  Egypt. 

"On  the  7th  of  January,  1831,  a  French  traveler  and  ex- 
plorer penetrated  the  depths  of  a  catacomb   near  the   site   of 
ancient  Thebes.    It  had  cost  him  time  and  treasure  and  influence 
to  make  the  entrance.     After  securing  the  license  to  make  the 
researches,   he  employed  more  than   four  hundred   men   for  a 
period   of   some    months    to    make   the    necessary    excavations. 
When  he  was  able  at  last  to  stay  within  this  multiplied  tomb,  he 
found  several  hundred  mummies ;  but  only  eleven  of  them  were 
in  such  a  state  that  they  could  be  removed.     He  carried  them 
away,  but  died  on  the  voyage  to  Paris.     By  his  will  the  mum- 
mies were  bequeathed  to  Michael  H.  Chandler,  his  nephew,  and 
in    search  of   this   gentleman   they   were   sent   through   Ireland 
and  finally  across  the  sea.     After  two  years'  wandering  they 
found    their    owner.      Hoping    to    discover    some    treasure    of 
percious  stones  or  metals,  Mr.  Chandler  opened  the  coffins  or 
embalming  cases.     Attached  to  two  of  the  bodies  were  rolls  of 
linen  preserved  with  the  same  care  and  apparently  by  the  same 
method  as  the  bodies.     Within  the  linen  coverings  were  rolls  of 
papyrus  bearing  a  perfectly  preserved  record  in  black  and  red 
characters,  carefully  formed.     With  other  of  the  bodies  were 
papyrus   strips  bearing   epitaphs   and   astronomical   calculations. 
The  learned  men  of   Philadelphia  and  other  places  flocked  to 
see  these  representatives  of  an  ancient  time,  and  Mr.  Chandler 
solicited  their  translation  of  some  of  the  characters.     Even  the 
wisest   of   them   were   only   able   to  intepret   the   meaning   of   a 
very  few  signs.     From  the  very  moment  he  discovered  the  rolls, 
Mr.  Chandler  had  heard  that  a  prophet  lived  in  the  West  who 
could  decipher  strange  languages  and  reveal  things  hidden,  and 
failing  with  all  the  learned  men  and  having  parted  with  seven 
of  the  mummies  and  some  few  strips  of  papyrus,  bearing  astron- 
omical    figures,    he    finally     reached    Kirtland    and    presented 
himself  to  Joseph  with  the  few  remaining  bodies  and  with  the 

[16] 


rolls  of  manuscript.  The  prophet,  under  inspiration  of  the  Al- 
mighty, interpreted  some  of  the  writings  to  Mr.  Chandler's 
satisfaction.  So  far  as  the  learned  men  of  Philadelphia  had 
been  able  to  translate,  Joseph's  work  coincided  with  theirs ;  but 
he  went  much  further,  and  in  his  delight,  Mr.  Chandler  wrote 
a  letter  to  the  Prophet  certifying  to  this  effect. 

"Later,  some  friends  of  the  Prophet  purchased  the  four 
mummies  with  the  writings.  Joseph  engaged  assiduously  to 
interpret  from  the  rolls  and  strips  of  papyrus.  The  result  of 
his  labor  was  to  give  to  the  world  a  translation  of  the  Book  of 
Abraham.  This  book  was  written  by  the  hand  of  Abraham 
while  he  was  in  Egypt,  and  was  preserved  by  the  marvelous 
dispensation  of  Providence  through  all  the  mutations  of  time 
and  the  dangers  of  distance,  to  reach  the  hand  of  God's  Prophet 
in  this  last  dispensation.  By  this  record  the  Father  of  the 
Faithful  makes  known  what  the  Lord  Almighty  had  shown  to 
him  concerning  the  things  that  were  before  the  world  was ;  and 
he  declares  that  he  did  penetrate  the  mysteries  of  the  Heavens 
even  unto  Kolob,  the  star  which  is  nearest  the  throne  of  God, 
the  Eternal  One.  *  *  *  At  the  time  when  Joseph,  aided 
by  the  Inspiration  of  the  Almighty,  was  enabled  to  make  those 
translations,  he  was  studying  ancient  languages  and  the  grand- 
est sciences,  while  he  was  also  imparting  instruction  in  the 
school  of  the  brethren  at  Kirtland,  that  others  than  himself 
might  have  their  minds  fitted  to  grasp  the  sublimities  of  truth 
in  theology  and  history  and  the  laws  governing  the  Universe."* 

That  the  prophet  most  sincerely  believed  in  the  authenticity 
of  the  Book  of  Abraham  and  the  correctness  of  its  translation, 
the  testimony  of  Mr.  T.  B.  H.  Stenhouse,  an  unfriendly  critic, 
is  of  value.  After  treating  the  subject  at  some  length,  he  con- 
cludes : 


"The  author,  notwithstanding,  still  clings  to  the  assertion 
that  Joseph  believed  sincerely  that  he  was  inspired,  and  the  pride 
with  which  he  gave  this  translation  to  the  world  supports  that 
conclusion."! 


*  The   Life   of  Joseph    Smith,  the   Prophet,   by   George   Q.   Cannon,   Juvenile    In- 
Etructor  Office,  Salt  Lake  City,  Utah,   1888,  pages  187-188. 

t  "Rocky  Mountain   Saints,"  page  520. 


[17] 


CHAPTER  VI. 

It  is  now  clear  that  in  the  translation  of  the  Egyptian 
hieroglyphics,  known  as  the  "Book  of  Abraham,"  we  have 
just  the  test  we  need  of  Joseph  Smith's  accuracy  as  a  trans- 
lator. The  original  text  with  the  Prophet's  translation  are 
available  for  our  investigation.  If,  in  the  judgment  of  compe- 
tent scholars,  this  translation  is  correct,  then  the  probabilities 
are  all  in  favor  of  the  correctness  of  the  Book  of  Mormon. 
If,  however,  the  translation  of  the  "Book  of  Abraham  is 
incorrect,  then  no  thoughtful  man  can  be  asked  to  accept 
the  Book  of  Mormon,  but,  on  the  other  hand,  honesty  will 
require  him,  with  whatever  personal  regret,  to  repudiate  it 
and  the  whole  body  of  belief,  which  has  been  built  upon  it  and 
upon  the  reputation  its  publication  gave  to  its  author. 

There  is  one  possible  objection  to  this  argument,  which 
should  be  considered.  In  the  translation  of  the  "Book  of 
Abraham"  no  mention  is  made  of  the  use  of  the  "Urim  and 
Thummim."  Does  this  omission  put  the  translation  of  the 
"Book  of  Abraham"  in  a  different  class  with  that  of  the 
"Book  of  Mormon,"  and  so  destroy  the  value  of  our  test? 
This  cannot  be  urged.  The  "Urim  and  Thummim"  quite 
clearly  were  but  a  means  to  an  end,  the  end  being  the  illumin- 
ation of  the  mind  of  the  Prophet.  They  did  not  use  him; 
he  made  use  of  them.  When  the  revelations  and  the  inspira- 
tions came  without  their  use  they  would  be  unnecessary. 

In  the  case  of  the  translation  of  "The  Book  of  Abraham," 
the  thoughtful  reader  of  the  preceding  pages  must  conclude 
that  the  Prophet  Joseph  Smith  and  his  associates  had  no 
thought  that  his  inspiration  and  the  resulting  revelation  was 
of  any  different  character  than  that  which  gave  to  the  world 
the  translation  of  the  "Book  of  Mormon."  Believers  in  the 
integrity  of  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  feel  sure  that  he  always  used 
whatever  means  were  necessary  to  open  his  mind  and  heart  to 
divine  illumination.  We  may,  therefore,  press  our  question, 
"Is  the  translation  of  the  'Book  of  Abraham,'  which  Joseph 
Smith  believed  he  made — even  as  he  had  made  the  translation 
of  the  'Book  of  Mormon' — by  Divine  inspiration,  a  correct 
translation?" 

[18] 


This  matter,  as  to  whether  the  "Book  of  Abraham"  was 
a  correct  translation,  was  investigated  in  1861  by  Jules  Remy 
and  Julius  Brenchley,  M.  A.,  and  upon  the  authority  of  Mr. 
Theodule  Deveria : 

"A  young  savant  of  the  museum  of  the  Louvre,"  the 
translation  was  declared  to  be  entirely  incorrect — and  an 
entirely  different  translation  was  published  in  the  investi- 
gator's book,  entitled  'A  Journey  to  Great  Salt  Lake  City.'* 

It  is  not  strange  that  this  opinion  has  received  but  little 
attention  from  the  Latter-Day  Saints. 

Mr.  Theodule  Deveria  is  described  as  a  "young  savant" — 
and,  unquestionably,  this  matter  is  far  too  important  to  de- 
pend on  the  opinion  of  a  youthful  amateur.  Such  an  impor- 
tant matter  deserves  the  thoughtful  consideration  of  mature 
scholars — of  the  world's  ablest  orientalists. 

It  is  in  the  belief  that  the  honest  searchers  for  truth 
among  the  Latter-day  Saints  will  welcome  the  opinions  of 
authoritative  scholars,  and,  if  necessary,  courageously  readjust 
their  system  of  belief,  however  radical  a  revolution  of  thought 
may  be  required,  that  the  following  judgments  of  the  world's 
greatest  Egyptologists  have  been  ascertained.  The  opinions 
were  obtained  from  the  scholars  themselves,  and  in  no  case 
did  one  man  know  the  opinion  of  another. 

It  will  be  seen  that  there  is  practically  complete  agree- 
ment as  to  the  real  meaning  of  the  hieroglyphics,  and  that 
this  meaning  is  altogether  different  from  that  of  Joseph 
Smith's  translation.  For  purposes  of  comparison,  the  text 
and  Joseph  Smith's  interpretation  is  given  first. 


•  A  Journey  to  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  Vol  II,  page  539. 


[19] 


A  FAC-SIMILE  FROM  THE  BOOK  OF  ABRAHAM. 

No.  1. 


QiD!fli'iniiniiii/iir, 


EXPLANATION   OF  THE  ABOVE  CUT 

Fig.  1  The  Angel  of  the  Lord.  2.  Abraham  fastened  upon  altar.  3.  The  idol- 
atrous priest  of  Elkenah  attempting  to  offer  up  Abraham  as  a  sacrifice.  4.  The  altar 
for  sacrifice  by  the  idolatrous  priests,  standing  before  the  gods  of  Elkenah,  Libnah, 
Mahmackrah,  Korash,  and  Pharaoh.  S.  The  idolatrous  god  of  Elkenah.  6.  The  idol- 
atrous god  of  Libnah.  7.  The  idolatrous  god  of  Mahmackrah.  8.  The  idolatrous  god 
of  Korash.  9.  The  idolatrous  god  of  Pharaoh.  10.  Abraham  in  Egypt.  11.  Designed 
to  represent  the  pillars  of  heaven,  as  understood  by  the  Egyptians  12.  Raukeeyang, 
signifying  expanse,  or  the  firmament  over  our  heads;  but  in  this  case,  in  relation  to 
this  subject,  the  Egyptians  meant  it  to  signify  Shaumau,  to  be  high,  or  the  heavens, 
answering  to  the  Hebrew  word  Shaumahyeem. 


[20] 


A  FAC-SIMILE  FROM  THE  BOOK  OF  ABRAHAM. 

No.  2. 


EXPLANATION   OF  THE  ABOVE   CUT 

Fig.  1.  Kolob,  signifying  the  first  creation,  nearest  to  the  celestial,  or  residetice 
of  God.  First  in  government,  the  last  pertaining  to  the  measuremqnt  of  time.  The 
measurement  according  to  celestial  time  which  celestial  timie  signifies  one  day  to  a 
cubit.  One  day  in  Kolob  is  equal  to  a  thousand  years,  according  to  the  measurement 
of  this  earth,  which  is  called  by  the  Egyptians  Jah-oh-eh. 

Fig.  2.  Stands  next  to  Kolob,  called  by  the  Egyptians  Oliblish,  which  is  the  next 
grand  governing  creation  near  to  the  celestial  or  the  place  where  God  resides;  holding 
the  key  of  power  also,  pertaining  to  other  planets;  as  revealed  from  God  to  Abraham, 
as  he  offered  sacrifice  upon  an  altar,  which  he  had  built  unto  the  Lord. 

Fig.  3.  Is  made  to  represent  God,  sitting  upon  his  throne,  clothed  with  power 
and  authority;  with  a  crown  of  eternal  light  upon,  his  head;  representing  also  the 
grand  Key-Words  of  the  Holy  Priesthood,  as  revealed  to  Adam  in  the  Garden  of  Eden, 
as  also  to  Seth,  Noah,  Melchisedeck,  Abraham,  and  all  to  whom  the  Priesthood  was 
revealed. 

Fig  4.  Answers  to  the  Hebrew  word  Raukeeyang,  signifying  expanse,  or  the 
firmanent  of  the  heavens;  also  a  numerical  figure,  in  Egyptian  signifying  one  thou- 
sand; answering  to  the  measuring  of  the  time  of  Oliblish,  which  is  equal  with  Kolob 
in  its  revolution  and  in  its  measuring  o<f  time. 

Fig.  5.  Is  called  in  Egyptian  Enish-go-on-dosh ;  this  is  one  of  the  governing 
planets  also,  and  is  said  by  the  Egyptians  to  be  the  Sun,  and  to  borrow  its  light 
from  Kolob  through  the  medium  of  Kae-e-vanrash,  which  is  the  grand  Key,  or,  in 
other  words,  the  governing  power,  which  governs  fifteen  other  fixed  planets  or  stars, 
as  also  Floeese  or  the  Moon,  the  Earth  and  the  Sun  in  their  annual  revolutions.  This 
planet  receives  its  power  through  the  medium  of  Kli-flos-is-es,  or  Hah-ko-kau-beam, 
the  stars  represented  by  numbers  22  and  23,  receiving  light  from  the  revolutions  of 
Kolob. 

Fig.  6.     Represents  the  earth   in   its   four  quarters. 

Fig.  7.  Represents  God  sitting  upon  his  throne,  revealing  through  the  heavens, 
the  grand  Key- Words  of  the  Priesthood;  as  also,  the  sign  of  the  Holy  Ghost  unto 
Abraham,  in  the  form  of  a  dove. 

Fig.  8.  Contains  writing  that  cannot  be  revealed  unto  the  world;  but  is  to  be 
had  in  the  Holy  Temple  of  God. 

Fig.  9.     Ought  not  to  be  revealed  at  the  present  time. 

Fig.  10.     Also. 

Fig.  11.     Also.     If  the  world  can  find  out  these  numbers,  so  let  it  be.     Amen. 

Figs.  12,  13,  14,  IS,  16,  17,  18,  19,  and  20,  will  be  given  in  the  own  due  time  of 
the  Lord. 

The  above  translation  is  given  as  far  as  we  have  any  right  to  give  at  the  present 
time. 


A  FAC-SIMILE  FROM  THE  BOOK  OF  ABRAHAM. 

No.  3. 


iiiiillniiiiilliilllllillliliilllHIIIililllililiilliiiiniiiilliiliiiiiliiilillllli:^ 


4t    jt-V  -V-V-Jlc    -^  'K^  jk-TJe^-it.  M  •)(■ 


EXPLANATION   OF  THE  ABOVE   CUT 

1.  Abraham  sitting  upon  Pharaoh's  throne,  by  the  politeness  of  the  king,  with  a 
crown  upon  his  head,  representing  the  Priesthood,  as  emblematical  of  the  grand 
Presidency  in   Heaven;  with  the  sceptre  of  justice  and  judgment  in  his  hand. 

2.  King  Pharaoh,  whose  nanie  is  given  in  the  characters  above  his  head. 

3.  Signifies  Abraham  in  Egypt;  referring  to  Abraham,  as  given  in  the  ninth 
number  of  the  Times  and  Seasons.     (Also  as  g^iven  in  the  first  fac-simile  of  this  book.) 

4.  Prince  of  Pharaoh,  King  of  Egrypt,  as  written  above  the  hand. 

5.  Shulem,  one  of  the  king's  principal  waiters,  as  represented  by  the  characters 
above  his  hand. 

6.  Olimlah,  a  slave  belonging  to  the  prince. 

Abraham  is  reasoning  upon  the  principles  of  astronomy,  in  the  king's  court. 


[22] 


CHAPTER  VII. 

OPINION  OF  SCHOLARS  UPON  THE  BOOK  OF  ABRAHAM. 

"It  is  diificult  to  deal  seriously  with  Joseph  Smith's 
impudent  fraud.  His  fac-simile  from  the  Book  of  Abraham 
No.  2  is  an  ordinary  hypocephalus,  but  the  hieroglyphics 
upon  it  have  been  copied  so  ignorantly  that  hardly  one  of 
them  is  correct,  I  need  scarce  say  that  Kolob,  etc.,  are  un- 
known to  the  Egyptian  language.  Number  3  is  a  representa- 
tion of  the  Goddess  Maat  leading  the  Pharaoh  before  Osiris, 
behind  whom  stands  the  Goddess  Isis.  Smith  has  turned  the 
Goddess  into  a  king  and  Osiris  into  Abraham.  The  hierogly- 
phics, again,  have  been  transformed  into  unintelligible  lines. 
Hardly  one  of  them  is  copied  correctly." 

DR.  A.  H.  SAYCE, 

Oxford,  England. 

"I  have  examined  the  illustrations  given  in  the  'Pearl  of 
Great  Price.'  In  the  first  place,  they  are  copies  (very  badly 
done)  of  well  known  Egyptian  subjects  of  which  I  have  doz- 
ens of  examples. 

Secondly,  they  are  all  many  centuries  later  than  Abraham. 
On  Number  2,  I  think  there  is — so  far  as  the  copy  shows  it — 
the  name  of  Shishak,  a  popular  name  in  Egypt  from  about 
950  to  750  B.  C.,  and  such  seems  to  be  about  the  date  of  the 
other  figures. 

Third,  as  to  the  real  meaning  of  them : 
Number  1  is  the  well  known  scene  of  Anubis  preparing  the 
body  of  the  dead  man: 

1.  Is  the  hawk  of  Horus. 

2.  Is  the  dead  person. 

3.  Is  Anubis. 

4.  Is  the  usual  funeral  couch. 

5.  6,   7,   8,  are  the   regular   jars    for  embalming  the 

parts  of  the   body,   with   the  head   of  a  hawk, 
jackal,  ape  and  man,  of  which  dozens  may  be 
seen  in  the  museums. 
10.  Are    the  funeral    offerings    covered    with     lotus 
flowers. 

Number  2  is  one  of  the  usual  discs  with  magic  inscrip- 
tions placed  beneath  the  head  of  the  dead.  Three  fine  ones 
of  the  same  nature  you  can  see  in  my  Abydos  1  LXXVII, 
LXXIX.  The  figures  are  well  known  ones  in  Egyptian  myth- 
ology. 

[23] 


J.  K  \n 


Number  3  is  the  very  common  scene  of  the  dead  person 
before  the  judgment  seat  of  Osiris,  which  occurs  in  most 
copies  of  the  funeral  papyri : 

1.  Is  Osiris  in  the  usual  form. 

2.  Is  Isis  behind  him. 

3.  Is  the  stand  of  offerings  with  lotus  flowers. 

4.  Is  the  Goddess  Nebhat  or  Maat  (too  badly  drawn 

to  know  which). 

5.  Is  the  dead  person. 

6.  Is  the  God  Anubis,  the  conductor  of  the  souls  of 

the  dead. 
The  inscriptions  are  far  too  badly  copied  to  be  able  to 
read  them. 

To  any  one  with  knowledge  of  the  large  class  of  funeral 
documents  to  which  these  belong,  the  attempts  to  guess  a 
meaning  for  them,  in  the  professed  explanations,  are  too 
absurd  to  be  noticed.  It  may  be  safely  said  that  there  is  not 
one  single  word  that  is  true  in  these  explanations. 

If  any  one  wishes  to  verify  the  matter,  they  have  only 
to  ask  any  of  the  curators  of  Egyptian  museums.  Prof. 
Breasted  of  Chicago,  Dr.  Lythgoe  of  New  York,  or  any  one 
else  who  knows  the  subject.  None  but  the  ignorant  could 
possibly  be  imposed  on  by  such  lucridous  blunders. 

Pray  make  any  use  you  like  of  this  letter." 

DR.   W.   M.   FLINDERS   PETRIE, 

London  University. 


Since  Dr.  Petrie  refers  to  two  American  scholars,  Dr. 
Breasted  of  Chicago  and  Dr.  Lythgoe  of  New  York,  we  print 
their  opinions  here :  Dr.  Lythgoe,  being  in  Egypt,  his  opinion 
could  not  be  secured,  but  instead,  that  of  his  assistant,  Dr. 
Arthur  C.  Mace,  was  obtained : 

"May  23,  1912. 

"I  have  been  greatly  interested  in  the  documents  you 
have  sent  me  regarding  the  connection  of  Joseph  Smith  with 
the  Egyptian  materials  purchased  by  his  people  in  1835,  and 
concerning  the  whole  situation  I  should  like  to  make  the  following 
statement : 

"In  1822  Champollion  published  the  first  successful  steps 
in  the  decipherment  of  Egyptian  hieroglyphics.  It  was  only 
very  gradually  after  this  that  he  gained  the  ability  to  read  the 
simpler  and  clearer  sentences  in  hieroglyphic  records.     Little 

[24] 


of  the  language,  comparatively  speaking,  was  understood 
when  he  died  in  1832.  He  left  in  manuscript  an  elementary 
grammar,  which  was  published  by  the  government,  beginning 
in  1836,  and  reaching  completion  in  1841.  It  would  have  been 
impossible  for  any  American  scholar  to  know  enough  about 
Egyptian  inscriptions  to  read  them  before  the  publication  of 
Champollion's  grammar.  I  may  add  at  this  point  that  Amer- 
ican Universities  have  never  until  recently  given  such  studies 
any  attention,  and  there  is  still  only  one  professorship  of  the 
science  in  the  United  States,  though  it  is  now  taught  in  the 
leading  American  Universities. 

"It  will  be  seen,  then,  that  if  Joseph  Smith  could  read 
ancient  Egyptian  writing,  his  ability  to  do  so  had  no  connec- 
tion with  the  decipherment  of  hieroglyphics  by  European 
scholars.  Now,  according  to  the  statements  of  Joseph  Smith 
himself,  the  three  Egyptian  documents  which  he  publishes 
in  connection  with  the  'Book  of  Abraham'  in  'The  Pearl  of 
Great  Price,'  were  secured  by  some  of  his  followers,  together 
with  some  mummies,  purchased  at  Kirtland  in  1835.  The 
point  I  wish  to  bring  out  is  that  the  three  fac-similes  from 
the  'Book  of  Abraham'  were  associated  with  mummies.  This 
fact  is  in  complete  harmony  with  the  further  fact  that  the 
three  fac-similes  are  part  of  the  usual  equipment  of  the  dead 
in  the  later  period  of  Egyptian  civilization  before  the  Chris- 
tian era.  The  three  fac-similes  in  question  represent  equip- 
ment which  will  be  and  has  been  found  in  unnumbered  thou- 
sands of  Egyptian  graves.  In  accepting  them,  then,  as  parts 
of  the  'Book  of  Abraham,'  let  it  be  understood  that  they  were 
in  universal  use  among  the  pagan  Egyptians,  and  that  for 
some  reason  the  doctrines  of  Joseph  Smith's  monotheistic 
Abraham  were  universally  accepted  and  used  among  the  poly- 
theistic Egyptians.  In  accepting  these  fac-similes  as  part  of 
the  'Book  of  Abraham'  it  remains  then  for  any  one  who  so 
accepts  them  to  explain  why  they  were  thus  universally  em- 
ployed by  a  people  who  knew  nothing  of  Abraham's  God  or 
Abraham's  religion.  The  point,  then,  is  that  in  publishing 
these  fac-similes  of  Egyptian  documents  as  part  of  an  unique 
revelation  to  Abraham,  Joseph  Smith  was  attributing  to  Abra- 
ham not  three  unique  documents  of  which  no  other  copies 
exist,  but  was  attributing  to  Abraham  a  series  of  documents 
which  were  the  common  property  of  a  whole  nation  of  people 
who  employed  them  in  every  human  burial,  which  they  pre- 
pared. This  was,  of  course,  unknown  to  Smith,  but  it  is  a 
•fact  not  only  of  my  own  knowledge,  but  also  a  commonplace 
of  the  knowledge  of  every  orientalist  who  works  in  the  Egyp- 
tian field. 

[25] 


I 


"Taking  up  these  fac-similes  now,  let  us  discuss  them  in 
order.  Number  1  depicts  a  figure  reclining  on  a  couch,  with  a 
priest  officiating  and  four  jars  beneath  the  couch.  The  re- 
clining figure  lifts  one  foot  and  both  arms.  This  figure  rep- 
resents Osiris  rising  from  the  dead.  Over  his  head  is  a  bird, 
in  which  form  Isis  is  represented.  The  jars  below,  closed  with 
lids  carved  in  the  forms  of  animals'  heads,  were  used  by  the 
Egyptians  to  contain  the  viscera  taken  from  the  body  of  the 
dead  man.  This  scene  is  depicted  on  Egyptian  funeral  papyri, 
on  coffins  and  on  late  temple  walls,  unnumbered  thousands  of 
times.  If  desired,  publications  of  fac-similes  of  this  resurrec- 
tion scene  from  papyri,  coffins,  tomb  and  temple  walls  could 
be  furnished  in  indefinite  numbers. 

"Fac-simile  Number  2  represents  a  little  disc,  sometimes 
made  of  metal,  sometimes  of  papyrus,  sometimes  of  woven 
goods  with  a  smooth  stucco  surface.  It  is  commonly  called 
among  Egyptologists  a  hypocephalus.  It  was  placed  under 
the  head  of  the  mummy  and  the  various  representations  upon 
it  were  of  a  magical  power  designed  to  assist  the  deceased 
in  various  ways,  especially  to  prevent  the  loss  of  his  head. 
These  did  not  come  into  use  until  the  late  centuries  just  before 
the  Christian  era.  They  did  not  appear  in  any  Egyptian 
burials  until  over  a  thousand  years  after  the  time  of  Abraham. 
They  were  unknown  in  Egypt  in  Abraham's  day. 

"Fac-simile  Number  3:  This  scene  depicts  the  god  Osiris 
enthroned  at  the  left,  with  a  goddess,  probably  Isis,  behind 
him  and  before  him  three  figures.  The  middle  one,  a  man, 
led  into  the  presence  of  Osiris  by  the  goddess  Truth,  who 
grasps  his  hand,  accompanied  by  a  figure  represented  in  black, 
the  head  of  which  probably  should  be  that  of  a  wolf  or  a 
jackal,  but  which  is  here  badly  drawn.  A  lotus-crowned 
standard  (numbered  3)  bearing  food,  stands  as  usual  before 
Osiris.  This  is  the  judgment  scene,  in  which  the  dead  man, 
led  in  by  Truth,  is  to  be  judged  by  Osiris.  This  scene  again 
is  depicted  innumerable  times  in  the  funeral  papyri,  coffins 
and  tomb  and  temple  walls  of  Eg^pt.  No  representation  of 
it  thus  far  found  in  Egypt,  though  we  have  thousands  of  them, 
dates  earlier  than  500  years  after  Abraham's  age ;  and  it  may 
be  stated  as  certain  that  the  scene  was  unknown  until  about 
500  years  after  Abraham's  day. 

"To  sum  up,  then,  these  three  fac-similes  of  Egyptian 
documents  in  the  'Pearl  of  Great  Price'  depict  the  most  com- 
mon objects  in  the  mortuary  religion  of  Egypt.  Joseph 
Smith's  interpretation  of  them  as  part  of  a  unique  revelation 
through  Abraham,  therefore,  very  clearly  demonstrates  that 
he  was  totally  unacquainted   with   the  significance  of  these 

[261 


^ 


documents  and  absolutely  ignorant  of  the  simplest  facts  of 
Egyptian  writing  and  civilization.  Not  to  repeat  it  too  often, 
the  point  I  wish  to  make  is  that  Joseph  Smith  represents  as 
portions  of  a  unique  revelation  through  Abraham  things 
which  were  commonplaces  and  to  be  found  by  many  thou- 
sands in  the  every-day  life  of  the  Egyptians.  We  orientalists 
could  publish  scores  of  these  'fac-similes  from  the  Book  of 
Abraham'  taken  from  other  sources. 

"For  example,  any  visitor  in  a  modern  museum  with  an 
Egyptian  collection  can  find  for  himself  plenty  of  examples  of 
the  four  jars  with  animal  heads — the  jars  depicted  under  the 
couch  in  fac-simile  number  one.  It  should  be  noted  further 
that  the  hieroglyphics  in  the  two  fac-similes  from  the  'Book 
of  Abraham'  (Nos.  2  and  3),  though  they  belong  to  a  very 
degenerate  and  debased  age  in  Egyptian  civilization,  and 
have  been  much  corrupted  in  copying,  contain  the  usual  ex- 
planatory inscriptions  regularly  found  in  such  funerary  docu- 
ments." 

JAMES  H.  BREASTED,  Ph.  D., 
Haskell  Oriental  Museum,  University  of  Chicago. 


"I  return  herewith,  under  separate  cover,  the  'Pearl  of 
Great  Price.'  The  'Book  of  Abraham,'  it  is  hardly  necessary 
to  say,  is  a  pure  fabrication.  Cuts  1  and  3  are  inaccurate 
copies  of  well  known  scenes  on  funeral  papyri,  and  cut  2  is 
a  copy  of  one  of  the  magical  discs  which  in  the  late  Egyptian 
period  were  placed  under  the  heads  of  mummies.  There  were 
about  forty  of  these  latter  known  in  museums  and  they  are 
all  very  similar  in  character.  Joseph  Smith's  interpretation 
of  these  cuts  is  a  farrago  of  nonsense  from  beginning  to  end. 
Egyptian  characters  can  now  be  read  almost  as  easily  as 
Greek,  and  five  minutes'  study  in  an  Egyptian  gallery  of  any 
museum  should  be  enough  to  convince  any  educated  man  of 
the  clumsiness  of  the  imposture." 

DR.  ARTHUR  C.  MACE, 
Assistant  Curator,  Metropolitan  Museum  of  Art,  New  York, 

Department  of  Egyptian  Art. 


[27] 


TWO  OTHER  AMERICAN  SCHOLARS'   OPINION   IS   GIVEN. 

"The  plates  contained  in  the  'Pearl  of  Great  Price'  are 
rather  comical  and  a  very  poor  imitation  of  Egyptian  originals, 
apparently  not  of  any  one  original,  but  of  Egfyptian  originals 
in  general.  Apparently,  the  plate  on  page  50  represents  an 
embalmer  preparing  a  body  for  burial.  At  the  head,  the  soul 
(Kos)  is  flying  away  in  the  form  of  a  bird.  Under  the  bed  on 
which  the  body  lies  are  the  canopic  jars  to  hold  the  organs  and 
entrails  removed  from  the  body  in  the  process  of  embalming. 
In  the  waters  below  the  earth  I  see  a  crocodile  waiting  to 
seize  and  devour  the  dead  if  he  be  not  properly  protected  by 
ritual  embalming  against  such  a  fate. 

"The  latter  (page  62)  is  also  connected  with  burial,  a 
representation  of  the  life  of  the  deceased  on  earth.  The 
hieroglyphics  which  should  describe  the  scenes,  however,  are 
merely  illegible  scratches,  the  imitator  not  having  the  skill 
or  intelligence  to  copy  such  a  script. 

"The  name  'reformed  Egyptian'  is,  if  I  forget  not,  a  term 
used  in  the  early  days  of  Egyptian  study,  before  much  was 
known,  by  certain  persons  to  designate  one  form  of  Egyptian 
script.  The  text  of  this  chapter,  as  also  the  interpretation  of 
the  plates,  displays  an  amusing  ignorance.  Chaldeans  and 
Egyptians  are  hopelessly  mixed  together,  although  as  dis- 
similar and  remote  in  language,  religion  and  locality  as  are 
today  American  and  Chinese.  In  addition  to  which  the  writer 
knows  nothing  of  either  of  them." 

DR.  JOHN  PETERS, 
University  of  Pennsylvania.    In  charge  of  expedition 

to  Babylonia,  1888-1895. 


"After  examining  'The  Pearl  of  Great  Price,'  by  Joseph 
Smith,  Salt  Lake  City,  Utah,  The  Deseret  News,  1907,  and 
in  particular  the  three  fac-similes,  Nos.  1,  2  and  3,  I  am  con- 
vinced that  the  following:  are  facts: 


««1 


'1.  That  the  author  of  the  notes  on  the  three  fac-similes 
had  before  him  Egyptian  inscriptions,  either  on  papyrus  or 
some  other  material,  or  else  fac-similes^of  such  inscriptions. 
Compare,  for  example.  No.  2  with  the  fac-similes  of  similar 
hypocephali  in  W.  M.  F.  Petrie's  Abydos,  Pt.  1,  1902,  Plate 
LXXVI,  LXXVII  and  LXXIX,  in  which  are  sections  ex- 
actly corresponding  to  sections  in  this  fac-simile  (No.  2). 

[28] 


"2.  That  the  author  either  knew  Hebrew  or  had  some 
means  of  arriving  at,  at  least,  an  elementary  knowledge  of 
that  language.  Compare  for  example,  the  transliteration  and 
translation  ))ip''\  in  No.  1,  note  12,  although  the  trans- 
literation 'Rankeeyang'  is  far  from  accurate. 

"3.  That  the  author  knew  neither  the  Egyptian  language 
nor  the  meaning  of  the  most  commonplace  Egyptian  figures; 
neither  did  any  of  those,  whether  human  or  Divine,  who  may 
have  helped  him  in  his  interpretation,  have  any  such  knowl- 
edge. By  comparing  his  notes  on  fac-similes  Nos.  1,  2  and  3 
with  any  elementary  book  on  Egyptian  language  and  religion, 
and  especially  by  comparing  the  notes  on  No.  2  with  the  ex- 
planation of  the  above  named  plate  on  page  49  ff.  of  the  work 
of  Petrie  already  named  (the  explanation  is  by  A.  E.  Weigall, 
Chapter  V),  this  becomes  unquestionably  evident. 

"In  general,  it  may  be  remarked  that  his  explanations 
from  a  scientific  and  scholarly  standpoint  are  absurd.  Com- 
pare No.  1,  note  1;  No.  2,  notes  4,  8,  etc.;  No.  3,  notes 
2,  4,  5.  The  word  'Jah-oh-eh'  in  note  1  of  No.  2,  which  he 
calls  an  Egfyptian  word  ( !)  is  his  faulty  transliteration  of 
the  Hebrew  nTH^ .  ^^  Abraham  wrote  anything  while  he 
was  in  Egypt,  it  would  most  likely  have  been  written  in  the 
Cuneiform,  as  that  was  the  langua  franca  of  his  day  and  his 
own  native  language. 

"Many  proofs  of  the  correctness  of  the  above  three  con- 
clusive points  may  be  offered  if  desired.  A  criticism  in  his 
explanations  could  be  made,  but  the  explanatory  notes  to  his 
fac-similes  cannot  be  taken  seriously  by  any  scholar,  as  they 
seem  to  be  undoubtedly  the  work  of  pure  imagination." 

REV.  PROF.  C.  A.  B.  MERCER,  Ph.  D., 

Western  Theological  Seminary,  Custodian  Hibbard 
Collection,  Egyptian  Reproductions. 


Two  German  Scholars,  Drs.  Meyer  and  Von  Bissing,  give 
their  opinion  as  follows.  Dr.  Edward  Meyer,  University  of 
Berlin,  is  one  of  the  foremost  living  historians : 

"The  Egyptian  papyrus  which  Smith  declared  to  be  the 
'Book  of  Abraham,'  and  'translated'  or  explained  in  his  fan- 
tastical way,  and  of  which  three  specimens  are  published  in 

[29] 


the  'Pearl  of  Great  Price,'  are  parts  of  the  well  known  'Book 
of  the  Dead.'  Although  the  reproductions  are  very  bad,  one 
can  easily  recognize  familiar  scenes  from  this  book:  'the  body 
of  the  dead  lying  a  ba'  (bier).  The  canopic  jars  containing 
the  entrails  under  it;  the  soul  in  the  shape  of  a  bird  flying 
above  it,  and  a  priest  approaching  it,  or  Osiris  seated  on  his 
throne,  Isis  behind  him,  the  Goddess  of  Righteousness  with 
the  feather  on  her  head  awaiting  the  deceased  from  the  throne 
of  Osiris." 

DR.  EDWARD  MEYER. 

University  of  Berlin. 


"I  have  been  interested  since  a  long  time  in  the  Mormons 
and  Joseph  Smith's  supposed  translations  of  Egyptian  texts. 
A  careful  study  has  convinced  me  that  Smith  probably  be- 
lieved seriously  to  have  deciphered  the  ancient  hieroglyphics, 
but  that  he  utterly  failed. 

"What  he  calls  the  'Book  of  Abraham'  is  a  funeral  Egyp- 
tian text,  probably  not  older  than  the  Greek  ages.  His  figure  1 
should  be  commented  upon  as  follows: 

"The  dead  man  (1)  is  lying  on  a  bier  (4)  under  which  are 
standing  the  four  canopic  jars  (5-8)  and  before  which  is 
standing  the  offering  table  (10).  The  soul  is  leaving  the 
body  in  the  moment  when  the  priest  (3)  is  opening  the 
body  with  a  knife  for  mummification.  Fig.  3  may  be  part  of 
the  same  papyrus — the  Goddess  Maat  (Truth)  is  introducing 
the  dead  (5)  and  his  shadow  (6)  before  Osiris  (1)  and  Isis  (2) 
before  whom  an  offering  table  stands  (3). 

"It  is  impossible  from  Smith's  bad  fac-similes  to  make 
out  any  meaning  of  the  inscriptions,  but  that  they  cannot  say 
what  Smith  thought  is  clear  from  the  certain  signification  of 
the  figures  1-5.  6  only  may  be  interpreted  in  different  ways, 
but  never  as  Smith  did. 

"Fig.  2  is  copied  from  a  hypocephalus  of  the  ancient 
Egyptians,  a  magical  book  on  which  Dr.  Birch  has  often 
written  in  the  proceedings  of  the  Biblical  Archaeological 
Society,  and  Dr.  Leamans  in  the  Actes  des  Congress  des 
Orientalistes  of  Leyden.  None  of  the  names  mentioned  by 
Smith  can  be  found  in  the  text,  and  he  has  misinterpreted  the 
signification  of  every  one  figure:    Fig.  5  is  the  divine  cow  of 

[30] 


Hathor,  6  are  the  four  children  of  Horus  as  the  Canopic  Gods, 
4  is  the  God  Sokar  and  the  Sacred  Book,  etc. 

"I  hope  this  will  suffice  to  show  that  Jos.  Smith  cer- 
tainly never  got  a  Divine  revelation  in  the  meaning  of  the 
ancient  Egyptian  Script,  and  that  he  never  deciphered  hiero- 
glyphic texts  at  all.  He  probably  used  Athenasius  Kirsher, 
the  Jesuit's  work,  and  there  found  a  method  of  reading  the 
old  Egyptian  signs  very  much  like  his  own." 

DR.  FRIEDRICH  FREIHEER  VON  BISSING, 
Professor  of  Egyptology  in  the  University  of  Munich. 


;r    .. 


